Manuel Valdes, commercial director of Screen, one of the main construction companies on both sides of the Rio de la Plata, analyzed in dialogue with Ambit the differentials between Uruguayan markets and Argentinian.
“In Uruguay We have been there for twelve years. Already with its own office in Punta del Este makes three. In the country we do not do our own developments, but we build for third parties and, paradoxically, during the pandemic, we went from 30,000 m2 to 150,000 m2 simultaneously, that is, we quintupled our production and today we have four very large projects,” said Valdés, among which he highlighted that of Cipriani Ocean Resort & Casinoin Punta del Este, whose first stage is 55,000 m2”. The company has directly, in Uruguay, almost 450 sources of employment among professionals and operators and about 1,500 indirect ones.
The executive valued the existing investment climate in the country, but differentiated different economic realities in the capital and the east. “Uruguay are two. Montevideo and Punta del Este are another Uruguay and, even, within Punta del Este There are two Uruguay, what you have before the bridge The bar and what you have later like Manantiales and José Ignacio, which are other high-end and more expensive products,” he explained.
About Montevideo, considered that “in itself it has a lot of housing promoted, a lot of investment for a middle class that is fundamentally looking for its first living place”. “The housing promoted has been extraordinary legislation that the Government has brought out, which has really driven the industry enormously and has made access to housing possible for an important segment of the population,” added Valdés.
Booming market in Uruguay
The executive noted that the Uruguayan market It is “extremely vigorous. “We believe that many of the investments have been driven since Argentina toward Uruguay for a matter of legal and economic security, where there are really attractive rates, even in dollars, with returns between 7 and 9%. There are also many temporary rentals, so the market is very active,” added the Criba manager.
“From the beginning we knew that it was a market in which we could develop very well. A country with values shared with our business vision, with clear rules, with deep agreements, with a vocation to look forward and progress,” he added.
Comparative advantages with Argentina
Valdés gave his opinion on the differences that exist today between the Uruguayan market and the Argentiniantaking into account that the company invests and develops on both sides of the Río de La Plata.
“The first is that in Uruguay there is predictability. Even though there was some inflation, the figures indicate that it is usually one digit and that is decreasing, which helps if one wants to project to make a investment and have a clear horizon,” he reflected and compared: “In Argentina with the inflation “From now on, currently between 25 and 30% per month, a project is launched and you really don’t know how much it is worth in dollars, how much it will end up costing with a daily exchange rate fluctuation.”
“In Uruguay They don’t look at the exchange rate every day. They work very freely with the market reality that favors large investments. In Argentina, On the other hand, we are on a roller coaster, so for us speed and vertigo are almost a habit,” he stated.
What to expect from the Uruguayan market?
“The perspectives of Uruguay We believe they are going to be very good, regardless of the fact that this particular year is an election year, where there may be some decisions that are delayed from an investment point of view,” said Valdés.
However, he clarified: “A lot, especially in Punta del Este, has more to do with what happens in the Argentine market that what happens the same in Uruguay, “With which we believe that the prospects will continue to be very good.”
Source: Ambito
